It is starting to happen—the inevitable stretch run that turns a recruiting class from impressive to outstanding.

Alabama seems to do this every year. While typically strong classes at Texas, Ohio State and USC get wrapped up pretty early in the process, the SEC’s elite programs have a love of the dramatic. They chop each other up until the last second before signing day—Alabama, LSU, Georgia, Florida, you name it.

As National Signing Day approaches, the rich—like Nick Saban and Alabama—tend to get richer, getting verbal commitments from top recruits. (AP Photo)

But this year, the Crimson Tide have the edge down the stretch. They have room in their class and have their eyes on the best kids still available. Late Monday, they picked up another Sporting News Top 125 defensive lineman when defensive end Tim Williams decided to leave his home state of Louisiana (and LSU) and commit to Alabama.

It is a sign of things to come in the last three weeks before the national signing period begins Feb. 6. Williams quietly committed to Alabama on Saturday during an official visit and went public with the news Monday. He was supposed to visit LSU this weekend, Florida State the next and Miami right before signing day, but he canceled those trips.

“Alabama was the first school that really started recruiting me,” Williams told The Times-Picayune in New Orleans. “They offered me my freshman year and have been on me since. My mom really liked what they offered, and she can come and see me play up there.”

It’s a huge blow to LSU—as the best player in the state has fled to a rival school. That’s what three national titles in four years will do for a program—and that’s exactly why Alabama will finish the recruiting season on fire. They are hardly finished.

Georgia product Robert Nkemdiche is still out there. He mentions LSU frequently, and his brother plays at Ole Miss, but Alabama has been in the mix all along. Nkemdiche is the No. 2 overall prospect in the SN125 and the best defensive end in the nation.

Laremy Tunsil, the best offensive lineman in the nation, is looking long and hard at the Crimson Tide, as is Montravius Adams and Matthew Thomas. SN125 defensive end Dee Liner had been committed to Auburn for a long time but has been quiet since Gene Chizik was fired. Monday, Liner and the Tigers parted ways and he’s reportedly eyeing Alabama.

Alabama won’t get all of these blue chippers on national signing day, but they’ll get some of them—enough of them to be the clear-cut winner of the “finished strongly” category.